Forward Conference 2026 Brand REFRESH
Forward is Hone's annual virtual conference, bringing together leaders and professionals for conversations around leadership, workplace development and the future of work.
I led the creative direction and design, refining the event's existing identity into a more polished, cohesive brand and extending it across digital, print and event experiences.
EVOLVING THE BRAND “FORWARD”
For this conference, I was tasked with refreshing the branding of the event while maintaining its overall recognizability. Building on the previous year's identity, I continued the color palette and font family, but focused on refining Forward's logo and visual language into a more elevated, polished brand. The updated system provided a cohesive foundation for the event's digital presence, marketing campaigns and on-site experiences.
LOGO AND GRAPHIC ELEMENTS
To unify the logo, I moved the tagline beneath it and added two graphic elements: an arrow that suggests forward motion, and an AI sparkle that nods to the conference's AI transformation theme. These elements carry through the rest of the event materials, reinforcing the text and giving the overall design a more balanced feel.
BEFORE
AFTER
Experimenting with new visual elements and an expanded color palette
I added more depth in the gradient and focused more on coral (rather than light pink) to create higher contrast. I also adjusted the filter on the model’s lighting to show more of their natural skin tone, reduce the pink overlay, and added a light blue accent for more contrast.
BEFORE
AFTER
EVENT WEBSITE
I designed the Forward event website, translating the updated identity into a cohesive digital experience. From event information and speaker highlights to registration, the site brought the conference together in one central destination. I designed it in Figma and passed the build to a web developer for art direction.
✨ Scroll the laptop to see the full site design ✨
Building anticipation
To build awareness and drive engagement ahead of the event, I developed a suite of promotional assets across email and social media. From nurture campaigns to speaker announcements and editorial carousels, each piece extended the Forward identity while supporting the event's marketing efforts. By the end of all pre-event communications, more than 10% of all direct traffic was largely attributed to outbound efforts.
EMAIL JOURNEYS + NURTURES
SOCIAL MEDIA
A week before the event, we gave all of our speakers their own spotlight: over nearly 20 LinkedIn posts in 5 days, each with a branded graphic and bio. Hone’s traffic and engagement surged, resulting in a 220% increase in impressions and reactions, and these posts alone were responsible for securing 7% of the event’s registrations.
BRINGING THE EVENT TO LIFE
I extended the Forward identity into the event itself, designing all Zoom event collateral, presentation decks for speakers and participants, Hone’s keynote presentation, and day-of email communications to ensure a consistent visual experience throughout the conference. Event imagery and supporting assets helped carry that identity across the attendee experience.
ZOOM EVENT PAGE
SPEAKER INTRO SLIDES - SAMPLES
HONE’S KEYNOTE - SAMPLES
CONTINUING THE CONVERSATION
Beyond the event itself, I helped extend Forward's reach through video and editorial content. I edited event footage into engaging social clips and developed blog content that carried key conversations and insights to a broader audience.
DAY-OF EMAIL
BLOG POST COVERS
SOCIAL CLIP SAMPLE
MEGAMENU COVER
POST-EVENT EMAIL
